Hero of My Heart
by fooboo24
Summary: Summer and Ben are sent to the Oblivia region investigate a special case, but will something more come out of it? Ben/Summer. ObliviaShipping. Based upon Pokemon Rangers: Guardian Signs.
1. Falling

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Pokemon.

**Author's Notes:** Okay, so two weeks ago, I got Pokemon Rangers: Guardian Signs (I love the Ranger games!), and I fell in love with the pairing of Ben/Summer, or ObliviaShipping. They are just so cute with their interactions in the game. And because there are barely any ObliviaShipping fics out there paired with my runaway imagination, I decided to do this. These interactions are based on the game, but I tweaked the so that they are a little more fan-friendly in the romance department.

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**Chapter 1**_** -** Falling_

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"This is going to be great, isn't it, Summer?" Ben smiled at his best friend and partner from his place on his Staraptor beside her. "Just this big, beautiful archipelago and the two of us…" At his trailing, he began to stare off into the Oblivia region clouds dreamily.

Summer blushed brightly at his facial expression and what he had said. "Remember what we're really here for, Ben," she warned. "We're not here to relax, we're here to protect Oblivia and look into this Pokemon Pincher case."

"Aw, Summer, no need to be so serious," he snapped back into reality. "It's not like we're going to be up and at it twenty four-seven."

"That's what you think," she gave him a small, playful smile, denoting that she wasn't thinking too seriously of their task. As far as both of them were concerned, the Pinchers weren't any sort of serious threat, and they would be sorted out by the end of the next week.

The two flew a little longer in silence, before Ben reached into his back pocket and pulled out a map of the expansion of islands and sea below them. "I hate that our Stylers have been malfunctioning… so… we're headed to… Renbow Island, which is right-"

"Llllllaaaaaaaa!"

The two rangers turned around to see a bright red Pokemon flying directly towards them, a panicked look etched across its face.

"Get out of the way!" Ben shouted as it flew closer to them. Summer followed his order suit, the Pokemon almost catching the corner of her Staraptor's wing in its rush. When all seemed clear, she sighed, flying back into the closer formation she had with Ben beforehand.

"That was… Latias," she murmured, not quite believing what she had just seen. And indeed, it had been the Legendary Eon Pokemon herself. But why had she seemed so frightened? "Do you think we should go after her and calm her down?"

Her fellow ranger was about to open his mouth to speak, when out of nowhere, two machines flew out from behind them, smashing past their Staraptors and in the direction Latias had gone. In quickly became apparent that the two had a new objective to finish before they could safely land on Renbow Island's sand.

Nodding at each other, they raced off after the strange vehicles and their drivers, urging their bird Pokemon to speed up just a little more each time the machines zoomed forward. Just when they both thought their Staraptors were ready to collapse to the ocean out of exhaustion, they saw the two strange flying machines chasing after Latias, with one of their drivers cackling, "We've got you now!"

Ben allowed Summer to have first word. "Now who do you think you've got?"

The machines' drivers stiffened and turned. "Rangers! Really?" one of them spat.

"Answer her!" Ben commanded.

"It's really none of your business, so bug off!" the taller one of them spat.

"We're rangers, we make it our business," Summer smirked.

"Fine then," the shorter one smirked back. "You wanna get involved, you're gonna pay." He thrust out his hand, where a funny-looking contraption was fastened to his wrist. A second later, below the rangers, a small flock of Pidgeys emerged from beneath the clouds.

Summer nodded at Ben, who stayed behind and captured the Pidgeys while she went ahead after the two strange men. He finished easily, and flying up to her, he noticed that with Summer yelling at them, she was allowing Latias time to get away.

One of the men also noticed, and began to wail, "Oh, great! Now look at what you've done!"

His partner turned to see what he was yelling about, and joined in. "Do you know how hard it was to locate Latias?" Ben was just about to fly over to Summer to high five her, when one of them smirked.

"Hey, buddy," he directed his smirk towards his friend. "Do you think maybe we should teach these two little pesky rangers a lesson?"

It took a second for his friend to catch on, but when he did, he smiled evilly and nodded, "Why not?"

Ben and Summer gave each other looks - this couldn't be good. Ben opened his mouth to speak, but was stopped by a powerful beam being shot in between the two rangers. "What the-!"

An array of blue and pink ball-shaped beams were shot at the rangers, forcing them to fly all over the sky to avoid them. When it seemed that the air assault had finished, they flew back into formation on their drifting Staraptors.

From behind them, yet another person joined in. It was a man with blond hair and red eyes, who wore his own ever-present smirk. "What is going on here?" he demanded at the two other men.

One of them cowered back and stuttered, "R-rangers, sir."

The man with red eyes, who was on his own, specially-colored contraption, turned towards Ben and Summer and growled something inaudible. "So, you want to get involved, do you?"

"It's our job, too," answered Summer back. "We can't let you go around hurting innocent Pokemon for no reason."

"Fine, then. Just remember that you started it," he flipped his hair back arrogantly, and pressed a button on his own machine. Ben, who was the closest to it, had to cover his eyes with his arm because of the heat that the machine was emanating. "And that you end here!" the red-eyed man finished, thrusting his hand forward.

Summer, through the bright light and heat the machine was giving off, noticed that it was yet another ball-shaped beam being formed - except this time, it was at least ten times bigger than before, and aimed directly for Ben.

Just when the red-eyed man was about to shoot it at her partner, she did the first thing that jumped into her head - protect him. Flying in front of Ben, the big, shining ball of power hit Summer full force, and with a piercing scream, she fell from her Staraptor's back and to the ocean depths below.

"Summer!" Ben shouted at her retreating form below him.

Soon he couldn't see any sign of her, except for the Staraptor she had been riding flying away. He was just about to fly after her when he heard a snicker from in front of him, and he turned his watery glare towards the red-eyed man. Breathing in shakily, he knew that his job wasn't to protect Summer, but protect Pokemon. Besides, she could take care of herself, right?

"How courageous, taking the hit for you," the man shook his head, crossing his arms. "But a waste of a sacrifice, isn't it? Because we're taking you in, anyway."

Ben felt a sudden aching in his chest - one of loss. Did this mean that…? No, no, it didn't. Summer was absolutely fine. But still, the young ranger was rendered almost useless by his worry for his partner, any so with little difficulty, the three mysterious men managed to take Ben and his Staraptor into captive.

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_End of Chapter 1~!_

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_**Author's Notes: **Haha, ObliviaShipping, anyone? Okay, I know there wasn't exactly tons and tons of that shipping in this chapter, but this chapter just helps build up to the parts that will!

_'Til next time!_

**_Fooboo24_**


	2. Reuniting

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Pokemon.

**Author's Notes: **And the real ObliviaShipping begins! …Also some Red Eyes/Blue Eyes, whatever that pairing is called.

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**Chapter 2 **_**-**_ _Reuniting_

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"Why are you in such a rush?" Blue Eyes huffed from behind Summer. When she didn't turn around to respond, Blue Eyes continued, "do you really want to see your little boyfriend that badly?"

"First off, he's not my boyfriend," Summer clarified. "And second off, I haven't seen him in weeks. I don't know what kind of condition he's in - bottom line is, I'm worried."

"Ah, young love," Blue Eyes looked dreamy for a second and clasped her hands together, before crossing her arms and scowling, as if she had a bad taste in her mouth. "Yeah, well, it only ends in heartbreak, kid. Don't let yourself fall for him, he'll just end up ignoring you."

"I told you it's nothing," Summer turned to give the blonde girl a serious look, but when she turned, she noticed that Blue Eyes was walking away from her. "Hey, where do you think you're going?" Ukulele Pichu's cheeks began to spark.

"Back to Tilt Village; I'm not going to Red Eyes," Blue Eyes huffed. Summer believed that maybe something had happened between the two that was causing Blue Eyes to act so coldly about Red Eyes.

"Look," Summer came up behind her and her partner Pokemon followed without hesitation. "I want Ben back… what do you say I help you with your little dilemma with Red Eyes, and you go back to him?" She gave the blue-eyed girl a playful wink, making her face go red.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about," Blue Eyes denied. Surely this ranger hadn't discovered how she felt about the other Pincher leader that easily!

"It kind of sounds like you liked him," Summer placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Not liked, _like_," Blue Eyes muttered quietly.

"Then why don't I give you a few pointers… I'm not a total reject when it comes to guys, you know," Summer gave her a smile.

Blue Eyes's eyes looked every which way before she sighed in defeat, "All right. I'll go."

* * *

Summer and Blue Eyes were standing on one side of the small expansion, while Red Eyes, a tied-up Ben, and a few Pincher goons were on the other.

"I see you followed through on our agreement," Red Eyes noted aloud, a hint of contempt in his voice.

"Unlike you, I'm respectful," Summer insulted him back.

"Now, now, no need to be mean," he taunted at her, shaking a finger.

"Just give me Ben, and you can have Blue Eyes," Summer turned to the blonde, who was looking everywhere but at Red Eyes. She winked at her, causing her to blush a deep red akin to her crush's eyes.

"Fine, fine," Red Eyes blew out coolly. He motioned for his goons to grab Ben and bring him forth, and they complied. They only brought him halfway though, and threw him to the ground.

"Ben!" Summer cried, rushing over to him and helping him to untie his ropes. He shrugged himself free and quickly embraced her, sticking his head into the crook of her neck. Blue Eyes raised an eyebrow at them, almost as though she were waiting for Summer to escort her to Red Eyes. When it became apparent that she wasn't going to, she sighed and awkwardly made her way over to the blond boy.

"Blue Eyes," Red Eyes nodded at her and stared her down, which made her blush deepen. "You seem a little red in the face, are you catching a fever or something? Did they do something to you while they had you locked up?" He placed his hand on her forehead, and her eyes widened before she shook it off.

"N-no, I'm fine," she reassured him, holding out her hands to keep him at a distance, despite what she wanted.

"Are you sure? You seem to be acting strangely," he gave her a look. Blue Eyes began to panic, and her eyes averted themselves frantically from his intense gaze at her. Her eyes quickly landed upon the bundle that was a hugging Ben and Summer, and mentally she beckoned Summer to stop her little reunion with Ben and help her. She couldn't remember anything that she and Summer had talked about on the way to make the trade. She knew she had gotten some useful advice from Summer, but her mind was drawing a complete blank.

When it became clear that Summer wasn't hearing Blue Eyes's mental pleads to her (although the blue-eyed girl knew she wouldn't), Blue Eyes relied on her scrambled instinct. "W-why? Would you care if something happened to me, Red Eyes?" She suddenly remembered something she had learned from Summer and regained her composure slightly before batting her eyelashes at him flirtatiously.

His regularly cool demeanour now became flustered and he was taken aback by her actions and question. "I… uh…" he stuttered, his face matching the color of his fiery eyes. "No," he said bluntly after a second. "It's just that the boss wouldn't one of his leaders down and out."

"Oh," Blue Eyes's lip trembled, but she refused to let herself cry over Red Eyes for a second time, let alone right in front of him. He began to walk back to his Z.Z. Flyer, and she panicked again. Summer was still too preoccupied in Ben to pay any attention to her, and so she resorted to the another thing they had discussed: jealousy. "So, I was thinking of asking Purple Eyes out. What do you think, Red Eyes?"

"What?" he spun around.

"Yeah, I mean, he's just so perfect. He's so nice and-" Red Eyes cut her off.

"Okay, stop right there. He's _perfect_? How so? The last time I checked, he's told you off damn near twenty two times, not to mention he is nearly ten years older than you and-" now Blue Eyes cut him off.

"What are you trying to say, Red Eyes?" she walked closer to him, shaking her hips for added effect with him.

He looked her up and down and gulped. Up until now, he'd never bothered to realize how attractive she really was. "I'm saying you're more suited for a guy like me." He crossed his arms uncomfortably. He'd never been good with emotions.

"Eh, I'll have to think about it," Blue Eyes shrugged as if it didn't mean anything in the world to her, but inside her heart was exploding like fireworks. She walked back to her prepared blue Z.Z. Flyer at that, leaving Red Eyes standing there, gaping at her. Another point she and Summer had discussed: play hard to get.

"What do you mean, 'I'll have to think about it'? It's either yes or no, Blue Eyes!" he shouted at her. She and the other two Pincher grunts just hopped on their Z.Z. Flyers and began to fly away, ignoring his shouting. He jumped on his own and followed pitifully, and Blue Eyes made a mental note to thank Summer the next time she saw her.

Back on the ground, Summer and Ben were holding each other closely, not having let go for even a brief second. Pichu was jumping up and down gleefully on the ground beside them. When Ben finally managed to pull away from her a bit, he noticed that she was crying, but she hadn't been before. She must've been waiting until the Pinchers left - it would be embarrassing if they saw her crying.

"H-hey," he wiped away a tear. "What's wrong?" He himself was trying not to cry - he thought that his best friend was dead no less than five minutes ago.

"What do you _think_ is wrong?" she cried, gripping his shirt in her small fists tightly. "I was worried sick about you! I thought that they had killed you, Ben!"

He regretfully let a tear of his own fall - so much for being the stronger of the two. Suddenly, they wouldn't stop falling like Summer's. He bent his forehead down and rested it on hers. "I was really worried about you, too, Summer," he pulled a loose piece of hair behind her ear and nuzzled their noses, reassuring her that he was perfectly fine. She began to stop her crying, but a few stray tears still fell. "But the second I saw you walk out into the light from that cave exit… I can't even begin to tell you how relieved I was."

"I just… really, really care about you," she admitted, letting go of shirt and wrapping her arms around his neck, sniffling a bit in the process.

"I know." He bent down and kissed the tip of her nose gently. "I do, too." His arms laced their way around her waist again, and they sat there in peaceful silence for a long time, enjoying a closeness the two hadn't experienced since their fourth year in Ranger School in Almia.

Eventually, the two best friends left Daybreak Ruins for Tilt Village, hand in hand.

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_End of Chapter 2~!_

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**Author's Notes: **Fluffy! ;3

'_Til next time!_

_**Fooboo24**_


	3. Relationship?

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Pokemon.

**Author's Notes: **I think that this is coming along splendidly, but it's sort of too soon to tell. Also, someone pointed out that I skipped the parts where the two were apart - well, that's being done on purpose. This is only circulating around the times when they are together, not apart. And this chapter is depressing, so, yeah... for Ben and Summer, at least. D:

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**Chapter 3 **_**- **__Relationship?_

* * *

After getting Ben checked out and cleaned up at the Union, the pair were off to Rand's house so that Ben could be acquainted and introduced like he was originally supposed to.

He and Summer made it to the hill where the older ranger's house lie without any difficulty, catching up mainly on things that had happened to them during their separate ordeals. But as they were approaching the front door, he paused and stopped.

"What's wrong?" Summer asked, turning around to face him with a concerned look.

"Eh," he rubbed the back of his head nervously. "I don't know. I'm just all shaky all of a sudden… I feel like I'm meeting your parents for the first time or something…"

"But you've met my parents, Ben," she laughed light-heartedly.

"I know… there's just something about the… _feeling_… of this particular situation," he turned away and blushed a bit, "that makes me nervous."

"Aw, Ben," she took hold of his arm in a gentle grip, not getting what he meant. "They're going to like you, they're going to like you a lot. You're a great guy." She gave his a reassuring smile, and all his fears of this family not liking him flew out the window at that.

He placed his hand on hers and squeezed it, before he nodded and they entered the house together.

* * *

"Heya, everybody," Summer waved to Nema as she entered through the front doorway.

"Oh! Summer! Hello," Leanne turned from her spot in the kitchen to give her a pleasant smile. "Perfect timing. I just finished making lunch!" Upon finishing her sentence, she noticed the presence of another person behind Summer. "Oh, and who is this?"

"This is my best friend and fellow ranger, Ben!" Summer took him by the hand and swung him in front of her as though she were proudly displaying him for Leanne and Nema to see.

"Well, hello there," Leanne left her post and walked to the front door area and gave him another one of her smiles. "Nema," she beckoned her daughter, "say hello."T

he younger girl looked up from the machine she had been toying with from her spot at the table, and the seconds her eyes landed on the ranger, she was lovestruck. He just looked so brave and courageous… and everything a girl her age could ever want in her perfect Prince Charming. "H-hi," she mumbled shyly at him, dropping her wrench.

"Hey, nice to meet you," he went forward and extended his hand for her. The usually thoughtful girl shook it numbly, staring into his deep brown eyes the entire time. "Summer told me you were the girl to see if I wanted my Styler fixed… that true?"

Nodding her head furiously, the smitten 11-year old managed out, "Y-yep. Here," she took hold of his arm, trembling sheepishly as she unlatched the device. "I'll fix it up right away."

"I owe ya one," he winked at her, sending a bright pink blush scampering across her pale face. She rushed out of the large main room and straight to her laboratory.

Leanne and Summer gave each other knowing glances before sharing a simultaneous giggle. Ben tried to ignore it - he hated it when women would do things like that. "Well, hi, Leanne," he turned to the teal-haired woman.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," she said with yet another smile. "But I wonder where my husband is at… he needs to meet you, as well…" she trailed to herself, walking over to a staircase located at the side of the room, going up it and checking the room above for Rand. He was just so all over the place - she never knew if he were out patrolling or if he were reading a book up there!

"Hey, honey!" Ben and Summer turned to where the booming voice came from, the doorway. The front door then flew open and in sailed Rand. "Oh," he stopped and blinked at the other two rangers who were blocking him from getting any further into his home. "Summer! You're back! Is something the matter at the Union or something, though?"

She shook her head at him, and pushed Ben into his view. "Nothing's wrong. This is the other ranger who I was supposed to come here with, though. Ben."

"Hello, Ben," he shook the younger ranger's hand with a firm grip. "Great to have another addition to the team." At that, Leanne came downstairs and noticed her husband.

"There you are!" she walked down the stairs and kissed Rand on the cheek. "Lunch is ready, and you're not going out on patrol again. You're staying here and enjoying it with us all."

"Okay, okay," he gave her a kiss back before setting his things down and beginning to set the table.

* * *

"So, Ben," Rand began to start up a conversation. "How do you know Summer so well?"

"She's my best friend," he turned to her and placed a hand on the back of her chair. "We just met one day when we were little and… ever since then, I've always considered her the closest friend I've ever had."

"Aw," Leanne involuntarily let what she was thinking slip, giving a look in between the two. When Rand noticed his wife's touched reaction, he gave a fatherly look at Summer before giving an overly-protective one to Ben.

"And is there anything going on, besides being 'just friends', with you and Summer?" He gave the ranger yet another disapproving look. Nema's eyes grew wide, and her glasses slid down her nose as she stared at her father for inquiring such a thing.

"Rand!" Leanne smacked his arm.

"I was just curious!" he tried to defend himself with an innocent lie, but the truth was, he had taken a paternal position to Summer, and was just looking out for her like any father would. He just didn't want any boy dating his Summer. Leanne crossed her arms and refused to acknowledge him, looking away from him defiantly.

"What?" Ben blinked. "M-me and Summer? Noo!"

"Exactly what he said," she dropped her fork and stuck her hands in front of her, waving them in a 'no-way' fashion.

"What Rand meant," Leanne gave him a sharp side-glare, "is that you two seem awfully close. And sorry for my intrusive question, but has anything ever happened?"

Summer was about to answer the question, when Nema purposely slid out of her chair, making it screech unpleasantly. "I'm going to eat my room," she said bluntly before leaving the four.

Four pairs of eyes blinked after her, and she shut her door quietly before Summer continued. "I… I guess, a few things," she mumbled, looking away from Ben. "But nothing serious enough to start anything over. I mean, ultimately, we only see each other as friends," she then turned back to him. "Isn't that right, Ben?"

"Uh, yeah, just… just friends, Summer," he didn't face her, and waved his hand dismissively. Leanne looked in between the two again, and could see the considerable difference of opinion in their faces, but left it at that. The rest of lunch was uncomfortable for everyone, especially for Ben and Summer.

* * *

Almost an hour had passed since lunch, and now Leanne and Summer were washing dishes and cleaning up while Rand had gone off to patrol and Ben was watching Nema fix his Styler. "Here you go, darling," Leanne handed a freshly washed plate to the dimmed Summer.

She took it without hesitation and then sighed heavily, reaching into the cupboard to place it there. Leanne, feeling extremely guilty, turned to her and finally confronted her privately about the subject. "I'm sorry about Rand's outburst from before, Summer," she apologized.

"It's okay, really. He didn't know - we get that question a lot, anyhow," Summer shrugged as though it were nothing - but from the look that was still implanted on her face, she was still upset.

"He just thinks of you as one of his own - you're like a daughter to us, you know," Leanne tried to explain her husband's actions. Summer just nodded. "Would you like to talk about it?"

"Oh my Arceus, yes!" Summer almost looked like she was going to cry, and Leanne was taken aback by her response.

Leanne placed a plate on the counter and walked over to the dining chair, pulling it out for Summer to sit on. The flustered ranger followed suit. Leanne sat down in her own chair and waited patiently for Summer to begin wherever she felt necessary about the topic of her and Ben.

"Sure, we've had our times - but like I said, nothing serious ever came of any of them. But one night, something almost did, but I said 'no', and it was the worst decision I had ever made since then," Summer's hands went to cover her face. "I don't think Ben ever really forgave me, either. I've always harboured the moment away - I have so many mixed feelings about it."

"Why don't you explain what happened, Summer, if you feel comfortable telling me that?" Leanne patted the upset girl's hand, and she nodded in agreement, breathing in shakily before explaining what had happened between her and Ben the one night…

* * *

**Flashback** _**-** two years ago, fourth year in Almia Ranger School_

* * *

"Summer skip out on you, dude? Find someone a little more classy to go to prom with?" one of Ben's ranger friends, Jacob, elbowed him teasingly.

"It's not a date, guys. We're going as friends," Ben tried to explain.

His other friend, Patrick, gave Jacob a look and they burst out laughing. Ben gave them a dirty look. "Ben, look, no one, and I mean _no one_, goes to prom as friends. It's a date either way you look at it, man," Patrick threw an arm around his neck. "She liiiiiiiikkkeesss you."

"Get off me," he pushed him off. "And no she doesn't! Why would you even say something like that?

""What? Would you rather we say 'forget it, let Vander go after her'?" Jacob jabbed his thumb over his shoulder to a group of scantily clad girls and their boyfriends. He was motioning to the tallest of the group, a stunning blond. "He's been going at her for weeks now."

Ben scowled. "Summer's better than that, she wouldn't fall for someone like Vander."

"I wouldn't doubt it, Ben," Patrick warned. "If you keep cutting signals short like you have been lately, she'll think you're not interested and that'll be it for you two. She'll be off in Vander-lovin' land by next week if you don't make a move tonight."

"Last time, you guys! I'm serious!" Ben, who was usually a pretty laidback guy, who beginning to get upset. "We're friends, and nothing's going to happen tonight! And I know Summer - she's not shallow enough to ever like Vander! Now get it through your heads that I don't like-"

Ben's mouth hung open slightly mid-sentence when Summer stepped into the large, decorated room. She looked dazzling, but at the same time, not too over the top like some of the other girls at their prom. She was wearing a flowing white dress that stopped just at her knees and she had daisies in her wavy hair. She looked downright gorgeous, and Ben couldn't stop himself from smiling ear to ear when he set his eyes upon her.

"Summer," he extended his arms out to her, "you look… wow." Jacob and Patrick began to snicker from beside him, and he gave them yet another look.

She blushed at him. "T-thank you, Ben."

He then held out his arm and she hooked her own around it. "Let's go get some punch and get away from these goofballs." She nodded at him, and they began to walk of to the little refreshment table, all the while Ben's two friends seemingly giggling at them.

The two got some punch as Ben had said and spent a good hour and half sitting at a secluded little table where they could just talk, eat, and laugh. Eventually, though, Ben noticed that Summer was beginning to lose interest in talking about how he messed up a capture on a Pikachu the week before. She yawned loudly and began to look around, bored. He noticed Vander looking from his friends back at Summer, chuckling about something. Panic set in when he left his group and started to make his way towards their table. Ben knew that Summer had come to the prom for more than just a chat-session with him - she probably wanted to dance, she wanted something memorable out of this experience, not just talking with her best friend which she could do on any ole day.

And _that_ - dancing - was what Ben had been trying to avoid all night. He was terrible at dancing, and he'd managed to keep that a secret from Summer in all their years of knowing each other. For this graduation prom he'd even gotten dancing lessons just for her, but he'd failed miserably at that and the teacher had given up on him. And, no doubt about it, Vander was coming over to ask her just that - and there was no way Ben was going to let that happen! With every step the blond made, Patrick's words resonated in Ben's head, _"She'll be off in Vander-lovin' land by next week if you don't make a move tonight." _And that was probably true. But Ben knew, personally, what a truly awful guy Vander was and how he was just putting on an act for Summer, and there wasn't a chance in hell that he was going to allow her to fall right into his hands.

And so with a swirling head and a pounding heart, Ben turned to Summer and took her hand in his, standing up and pulling her with him.

"Ben! What are you doing?" she cried in surprise.

"Would you, um, like to dance with me, Summer?" he asked, a sheepish blush crawling across face at his question. He looked over in Vander's direction inconspicuously to see the blond glaring and walking back to his group of so-called friends. Ben just barely contained a triumphant smile, for Summer's sake.

Her eyes sparkled at his inquiry, and with the most brilliant smile he had ever seen, she answered with, "I thought you would never ask." She took full control of the situation now, and began pulling him towards the dance floor. She found a not-too-crowded spot, and stopped there. She waited for Ben to 'correctly' place his arms around her, and when he awkwardly fiddled with them for a few minutes, she gave an impatient huff before gently taking his hands and putting them on her hips. "Calm down," she whispered to him, "it's dancing, Ben. Relax." He did as he was told - he trusted her immensely - but still remained slightly tense.

_How do I do this? _Ben stared down at his feet as though he were willing them to move, but alas, they didn't. When Summer noticed he wasn't going to start them off, she sighed with a small smile and wrapped her arms around his neck, beginning to flow to the music. "Do you know how to dance, Ben?" she asked innocently.

Ben panicked. Was it really that obvious? "N-no," he admitted, an ashamed look on his face.

"Hey," Summer gently pushed his face back to look at her. "It's okay. I don't, either."

He blinked incredulously. She didn't? Then what was she doing with him right then? He didn't say anything more, though, and felt renewed confidence in knowing that he wasn't the only one. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Patrick and Jacob smiling knowingly. Summer noticed her own friends, Alexa and Rowen, giggling and pointing at her and Ben. When the song ended, she excused herself from him for a brief second so she could go speak to them.

"What are you two laughing at?" she asked them as she approached the pair.

"Isn't it obvious?" Alexa giggled. "You two are so perfect for each other, and you're the only people who, coincidentally, don't see it."

A blush tinted Summer's cheeks. "What? No way!"

"Uh, yeah way," Rowen sniggered before pushing her friend back out onto the dance floor.

Summer rolled her eyes. There wasn't anything there with Ben that she didn't know about, right? …_Right_.

Ben smiled at her, and she felt her cheeks heat up again. He took her hand and pulled her into a spontaneous hug. Suddenly, her heart began to thud her chest at his embrace, and alarmed by her reaction, she pulled away. "Everything okay, Summer?" he asked.

"Yeah, everything's peachy keen," she made an a-okay sign with her fingers, chuckling nervously. She didn't like Ben, she liked Vander! So why was she so jumpy and anxious all of sudden? "B-but," she stammered, trying to think of an excuse to keep him at a distance, "I have an exam tomorrow, and I s-still have to study for it, so I should probably leave now and get a head start."

She turned away to avoid seeing his hurt face, but at her attempt to leave, she felt him grab at her shoulder. "One more time?" he smiled slightly, motioning to the dance floor. Summer, unable to resist her best friend's cute smile, nodded and allowed him to pull her to him.

He lead her out to the dance floor once more, and thought to himself, _maybe Patrick is right._ He'd been through so much with Summer already, and so she probably trusted him enough that if he made a move right there, she most likely wouldn't deny him. But what if she _did _deny him? What if he made an everlasting mistake that would ruin their friendship forever? He decided right then and there, though, that he needed to take a risk and follow through on it - at least one in his life - and make it really count.

"Su-Summer," he started quietly. He thought that the talking part of it all would be the most difficult, but he found that the less he mentally scrutinized himself, the easier the words flowed. Taking in a steady breath, he continued, "We've known each other for a really long time, and at first, I thought that all we were ever going to be was just… well, friends." Summer's heart began to pick up speed again, but she didn't gravitate away this time or change the subject. She just listened and… _hoped_. "And lately, I've felt a little differently about you with each passing day. G-good different, that is," he sheepishly rubbed the back of his head, "and the thing is, Summer… I think I like you… a lot…" He looked away, blushing a bit. Neither of them moved, and they had stopped dancing completely. Reading his mind, Summer leaned up and in, brushing her lips past his.

He was stunned, and loosened his grip on her slightly. Had she just kissed him? She blinked at him, waiting for a response. How should he react to something like that, though? He didn't give his mind anytime think about it or catch up with his actions though, because in a flurry, he was wrapping his arms around her and kissing her again…

* * *

_End of Flashback_

* * *

"So what's so bad about that?" Leanne asked, genuinely confused. "It sounds like you two were really… erm, in lov- like you two really liked each other."

"What's so bad about it? Nothing was bad about it, Leanne. It was perfect. But I freaked out afterwards," Summer explained. "I freaked out and ran away and just flat out left him standing there! I was horrible to him! I ignored him and avoided him for days, and then on the one day that I did plan on telling him it was all a mistake and that I wanted to reconcile, but as friends, I arrived to all our shared classes holding hands with that rotten Vander! That's what was so bad about it all!" Summer hated to reflect on the memory, and doing so usually ended with her crying, which she was now.

"Oh," Leanne blinked. She hadn't expected what had happened to be anywhere near that severe. "So you told him you only wanted to be friends, I see…"

"Not just that, I went out with the guy he despised to top it off. I never listened to him about Vander, and he was a real jerk and I broke up with him, but not before it was too late for hurting Ben. I was terrible to Ben for the rest of the year after that… I mean… we did talk to each other and make-up, but… like I said, I don't think he's ever really forgiven me for what I did. He told me that it was all a mistake and that it was okay, b-but… I don't blame him for any of it… Ugh, I'm a horrible friend!" Tears began to pour more heavily down Summer's face, and she fell into Leanne's extended arms. The rest of their afternoon was spent with Leanne comforting and consoling the bawling girl.

* * *

_End of Chapter 3~!_

* * *

**Author's Notes: **I can't wait to write the seventh chapter. I have an idea for it and it's killing me because I want to write it NOW! But I've got three more to do first… damn! Also, denial and jealousy are the funnest things to write in the entire world. :3

'_Til next time!_

_**Fooboo24**_


	4. Submarine

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Pokemon.

**Author's Notes:** O-llo! (_Megamind FTW!_) I am back with yet another chapter of this story - it seems like forever since I last posted one! But this chapter is Shorty McShort-Short... so, yeah. The next chapter few chapters (the next two) will be a bit shorter than the rest, but then, after that, they will get longer.

* * *

**Chapter 4 **_**-**_ _Submarine_

* * *

"Ugh," Ben grunted, pulling himself up, with much difficulty, from the steely cold submarine floor. The Pokemon Pinchers - Blue Eyes and all - had fled the submersible in a flurry after pulling the self-destruct button in the main control room, leaving the two Rangers to fend for themselves from that point on.

Rubbing his pain-stricken head, Ben turned to his partner, expecting her to be following his actions suit by standing up and regaining consciousness. Thing was, she wasn't. Ukulele Pichu jumped up and down beside Summer, but she still wasn't moving. The Pokemon turned to Ben, squeaking in worry. "Pichu, pich!"

Kneeling down, he flipped Summer over so she was facing the ceiling and then propped her up against some of the broken debris. "Summer?" he waved his hand in front of her blank face, "whoo-hoo, Summer?"

When she still didn't show any signs of awakening anytime soon, Ben was still not panicked. Summer was his best friend, and knew that she was a heavy sleeper - she could sleep through just about anything, and it was a pain to try to wake her up, because it seemed that nothing worked and that the only solution was letting her do so on her own accord. Ben would've carried her out of there, but they had to climb to get out, and so he couldn't. But he also knew that he couldn't just hang around and wait for her to wake up, that would take much too long, and the submarine was sinking faster and faster with each passing second, and getting all three of them out of there alive and well was Ben's top priority.

When she still didn't wake up, Ben hesitantly ran off to look for a water Pokemon. He captured it with ease, and brought it to her where he then commanded it to spray her in the face with water. It still didn't work!

Ben was frustrated now - all of his attempts to wake his friend had failed, and miserably at that. Sitting beside her, he did what he dreaded doing in the first place - looking for injuries. He gently lifted her head, and upon moving her hair a bit, saw that she had a large welt on the back of it. It was slightly bloody and swelled up. Now, Ben allowed panic to flood his system - Summer was hurt. Summer was injured, and there was nothing he could do about it.

What if she had gotten a concussion from the rough fall of the submarine? Or what if something had fallen and landed on her during the ordeal? He gently patted her hair back into place, as if to provide the injury with what little protection it could have, and upon physical contact, Summer scowled and turned away from him - most likely cringing in pain.

"Oh, Summer! I'm sorry," he whispered to her, pulling her back in his direction. His mind was racing as he looked at his gloved hand, blood covering it in various spots. She mumbled something inaudible, but Ben was pretty sure she was complaining about how much it hurt. Finally realizing the severity of the situation, Ben tightened his grip around her, while still being deathly careful to watch the gouge on the back of her head.

"S-Summer…" he whimpered out involuntarily, pressing a kiss to her temple. He couldn't lose her - not his best friend! He was an emotional guy, and so was getting extremely worked up over this, and before he or Ukulele Pichu knew it, he was pouring out his heart and soul like there was no tomorrow. And hell, if there wasn't going to be a tomorrow for them, why hold back?"

I know that you know that ever since we were little kids… you've been my best friend, Summer," he choked out. "And I don't want to lose you! I couldn't do it… I couldn't be a Ranger without you, Summer. We've been through way too much together to just let it end this easily. Li-like that time at the dance. I know you hate that memory, Summer, but I can't help but think back to it sometimes and think 'what-if'? I try not to, for your sake, for the sake of our friendship, but sometimes I do, and I can't help it. And… th-the truth is, I _know _now that I do, in fact, lo-"

The submarine then lurched violently, jolting the three of them forward. Ben threw himself in front of Summer to protect her from any further harm. Looking down to make sure that she hadn't sustained any further injury, he noticed that her eyes were fluttering and blinking up at him, a light pink blush staining her cheeks.

"Summer!" Ben almost pounced on her in relief, but reminded himself of the bump on her head. It didn't occur to him that she had heard _every little word _he had said and _almost_ said to her. "I'm so glad you're okay!" He hugged her tightly around the waist and stuffed his face into the crook of her neck.

"B-Ben!" she stuttered. She opened her mouth to speak again, but found that no words were coming out. So instead she just hugged her dear friend back. Suddenly, breaking the moment the two were sharing, Ukulele Pichu squeaked once again as water began to leak into the control room. He was jumping and squeaking at it furiously, trying to get the distracted Rangers' attention. Finally, they did notice, and jumping apart from each other, they pulled out their stylers and nodded at each other, a light blush still emanating on both of their cheeks. Summer reassured Ben that she would be fine until they got out of there.

"Let's do this! Let's save the Pokemon of this submarine!" She smiled determinedly at Ben, and he nodded back confidently, before she grabbed his hand and the pair and Ukulele Pichu ran off through the rising water to save the Pokemon and escape the sinking submersible.

* * *

_End of Chapter 4~!_

* * *

**Author's Notes: **Short chapter is incredibly short. Well, it wasn't meant to be anything too painfully long, anyway. Just a fill-in chapter, really.

'_Til next time!_

_**Fooboo24**_


	5. Hold On

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Pokemon.

**Author's Notes: **Here's another chapter! I'm sorry for taking such a horridly long time to update - I'm notorious for it, but I'm trying to improve!

* * *

**Chapter 5 **_**- **__Hold On_

* * *

"This is like… déjà vu, Summer," Ben remarked as they flew through the reddening evening skies. It was just like the first time they came to Oblivia.

A little while back, they had infiltrated the submarine of the Pokemon Pinchers. When it had crashed and seemingly all doom had fallen upon the pair, they still managed to successfully rescue all the Pokemon and Pokemon Pinchers (including Blue Eyes) left on board from the sinking submersible. As far as both Summer and Ben were concerned, the Pokemon Pinchers had been dealt with, and now, they were just dawdling around in Oblivia doing quests and patrolling while waiting for formal commands from Hastings to go back to Almia.

But the truth was - they didn't want to leave Oblivia. It was like their home now. They loved Rand, Leanne, and Nema as though they were their real family, and leaving them would be downright painful for both parties. Right then, the pair were flying back to the Ranger household after a short patrol.

"It is," Summer nodded at him. "Do you think we should go back now?" she inquired after a second, turning to him.

"Sur-" Ben was interrupted when the seemingly impossible happened. Latias flew out of nowhere and shot past both of them at an alarmingly pace. The only thought that went through Ben's head was _oh __**no**_.

"Ben," Summer gave him a concerned look. He returned it. Then, as both unhappily expected, some Pinchers' Z.Z. Flyers were heard from behind.

Summer was thoroughly confused. The Pokemon Pinchers were _supposed _to be gone, over, done with! So what were they doing here, right now, chasing after Latias yet again? Were-

Summer yelped as one of the Z.Z. Flyers flew into her. Her heart raced when, instead of feeling her Staraptor's comfortable, familiar feathers, she felt the piercing sting of the cold wind as she fell to the ocean below - just like the first time she had come into contact with the Pinchers.

Tears formed in her eyes as she fell, blurring her vision. Her Ukulele Pichu was shouting down at her; she could hear his frightened cries.

_This is it_, she thought as she let a tear fall and cascade through the air with her. _This is how I'm going to die… _Closing her eyes tightly and holding her hands to her chest, she waited for the inevitable impact that was to be the cold ocean water piercing her skin.

"SUMMER!"

Despite hearing Ben's cry for her, Summer refused to open her eyes to see his expression. It would be too painful. But as soon as she felt the first cool sprays of the ocean on her goose-bumped skin and the thought of her demise flashed through her mind again, did she feel a warm, comforting hand wrap grab her own and pull her to safety. "Hold on!" her rescuer yelled to her, and she didn't as she was told, grabbing on to their shirt in her fists and holding on for dear life as they soared through the Oblivia sky.

After a few minutes had passed, she allowed herself to reopen her teary eyes and the first sight she saw was, to her immense relief, was Ben. She didn't hesitate to throw her arms around him, and she finally let the tears in her eyes fall.

"B-Ben…" she murmured into his shoulder. Understanding how upset she was over the experience, Ben searched for the closest island to them, which was Tilikule Island. He manoeuvred his Staraptor to the small, unpopulated island and set down there.

Ben climbed off Staraptor carefully while still holding Summer in his arms. He sat her down and kneeled in front of her, and she continued to allow tears to stream down her face. He didn't care how long she would take doing so - he would easily wait all night for her, he just cared that she was safe. After a few minutes of letting her cry, he became a little more concerned, and placed his hands on her shaking shoulders and said, "Summer, it-it's okay." His own voice had cracked a little bit as the situation hit him, too - he had almost lost Summer once again.

She didn't respond. He continued with, "You know I would have never let you fall. I would never of let you fall again. Not like the first time, Summer, not like the first."

This seemed to stop the flow of waterworks a little, and she wiped her eyes and sniffled, looking up at him. "I-I know. Thanks, Ben," she leaned in and hugged him, adding quietly, "and I love you."

Ben tried to shake off the shivers that went down his spine at the last thing she said to him. _As a friend, stupid, as a friend_, he told himself repeatedly, feeling his heart break a little more each time he told himself it.

"Same," he patted her back, feeling a little awkward now. He pushed her away after that, and she gave him a strange, hurt look, but did as she was directed, and pulled away. She hadn't even really realized what she had said to him and the effect that it had on him.

"Well, th-thank-you again," she sniffled after another minute passed. She turned to see Ben's Staraptor, who chirped, concerned, at her. "And thank-you, Staraptor." Realizing she was okay, it warbled happily.

Then realization hit her, herself - where was her Ukulele Pichu and Staraptor? Beginning to panic, she faced Ben and was about to open her mouth to inquire where they were, and already sensing what she was going to say, he smiled knowingly and pointed up, where, high in the sky, was her Staraptor flying in circles with a ecstatic Ukulele Pichu jumping up and down on its back.

Summer waved to them, reassuring them she was okay, a wash of relief coming over her that her Pokemon were safe. After a second, she turned back to Ben and asked, "Why were those Pinchers chasing Latias again? I thought they were all gone! Should we go after them?"

Ben simply shook his head. The sun was beginning to set and night time was making its way upon Oblivia. "No, it's too late to go searching for them - it will be pitch black soon," he explained his reasoning, "and besides, we don't have any information on why they could possibly be back. I think we should go back to Rand's and sleep on this, and then discuss the situation a little further in the morning with him, Professor Hastings, and Murph." He then stopped, and gave a small smile, "and besides, you've been through enough today. So, sound good?" She nodded.

Ben then stood up and helped her up. She called down her Staraptor and after a reunion with a worried-sick Ukulele Pichu and the bird Pokemon, did the two fly off back to Rand's house for the night. While Summer's mind was perfectly clear and relaxed as the wind blew auburn hair, Ben's kept repeating the words she had said to him - a specific set of words, that is. _I love you_. And though he felt immensely guilty about it, a warm feeling also flooded his heart every time they passed through his conscious.

* * *

_End of Chapter 5~!_

* * *

**Author's Notes: **Bah, one more chapter until I get to the one I really want to write. Yay! But the next one may be a little long, actually, as a few more significant events than normal are going to take place within it. But we'll see.

'_Til next time!_

_**Fooboo24**_


	6. Crush

** Disclaimer: **I do not own Pokemon.

**Author's Notes****: **Okay, originally, in place of this note you are reading now, I had a big long explanation of why I haven't updated in a while - because my computer crashed. It also explained that I had gotten it back and that it was working perfectly fine again, but... alas, because all technology hates me, it crashed yet again the night after I had written the explanation. It turns out it crashed completely. Good thing I have a laptop. So, I will say now - sorry, a million times sorry for this being so late!

* * *

**Chapter 6 **_**- **__Crush_

* * *

"So, Nema," Summer began as she stood on her tiptoes, trying to reach the tallest of the cupboards in the kitchen in order to put the freshly-washed plates away. She had just finished washing the dishes from her and Nema's lunch. That day, Rand and Leanne had gone off to do their respective thing, and had asked Summer to babysit Nema for them. Of course, Summer agreed without any hesitation. How could she not, Nema was adorable! Ben had gone out on patrol and taken Ukulele Pichu - who gets restless when not taken outside daily - and had agreed to come and check up on them every once and a while. "What do you want to do this afternoon? I heard that a flock of Psyducks came in early this morning at the beach... do you want to go examine them?"

"I wanna talk about boys," Nema said simply, peering up at the Ranger with wide, innocent eyes.

"W-what?" Summer spluttered incredulously, almost dropping the plate that was in her hand. "Nema, you're eleven years old!"

"So?" Nema shrugged at her. So what if she was eleven?

"Uh, I guess," Summer finally agreed, putting the last plate away. She then walked over and took a seat next to the blue-haired girl at the kitchen table. "But remember, _Psyducks_!"

Nema only waved her hand dismissively. "Ah, whatever. They'll be here for a few days, anyway. I'll check them out tomorrow. But for now," she hopped up from her seat, repositioning herself on her knees, her smile bright and her eyes shining eagerly, "I want to talk about boys!" She pumped her hands in the air demandingly.

"Okay, okay," Summer put her hands in front of her to restrain the little girl. "So, uh, is there something in specific that you want to talk about? Or... _someone_?" Summer raised her eyebrows teasingly at Nema.

"Actually," the glasses-wearing girl began. "There is someone I would like to talk about."

Summer almost doubled over in surprise, but restrained herself for Nema's sake. "O-okay, then, continue."

"You're an expert on this person - I know that for sure. That's why I am talking to you about it," Nema explained. Summer only blinked at her. Who could she possibly be an expert on? When it became apparent that the Ranger wasn't catching on, Nema sighed exasperatedly before continuing, "It's Ben." Once again, Summer almost doubled over.

"WHAT?"

"Ben. That's what I said," Nema answered back innocently, raising her eyebrows at Summer's somewhat outrageous reaction.

"Really, _Ben_?" Summer reiterated Nema doubtfully, trying not to sound condescending. What could an eleven year old want with someone nearly eight years older than herself? Looking down at her with a smile, Summer could see that Nema was dead-serious. Wiping the smirk off her face, the young Ranger tried to seem professional and just as strict as the little girl before her. Squaring her shoulders, she asked, "So... what about Ben, Nema?"

"It's quite simple, really," Nema closed her eyes knowingly, nodding. "I'm in love with him, you see."

This time, Summer could no longer contain herself - she spluttered, and she spluttered outright. "IN LOVE WITH HIM?" she managed after a second.

"Yep!" Nema smiled. "I've already got it all figured out, too, Summer! I'm so excited about all of it!"

Summer cocked an eyebrow at her, still panicking a bit inwardly. "About all of what?"

"Our inevitable wedding, of course," she nodded again. "I mean, it's so obvious that he loves me, too. He's nice to me all the time and he's very helpful. He's just perfect - my parents will love him as a son-in-law! And look!" She hopped off her chair and into her room for a few seconds, returning with a thick duotang.

Summer blinked at it. "What is this?"

"My wedding-planning booklet!" she slammed it down on the table. She started to point to different spots on multiple pages. "Okay, so we're going to have daisies as the main flowers..."

And Summer zoned out. Okay, this was getting completely ridiculous. Actually, it was borderline past that! It... it... it was insane! Impossible! Flabbergasting! It was- "You're okay with this, right, Summer?" Nema inquired up to her.

Summer blinked right back at her. "What? With daises? Uh, sure?"

"No, I mean with Ben and I," Nema gave her a look. Her glasses then glared a bit from the sun coming in the window. "You guys seem to of had a fling of sorts. Am I right?"

"Okay, first off," Summer sighed, holding up her hands. How many times did she have to tell people this? "I've never been or had anything with Ben," she lied. "And second, sure. I'm all for it."

"Good," Nema pulled a pen out of her lab coat and wrote something down in her duotang. "You can be my Maid of Honour then."

Summer rolled her eyes in amusement, leaning her elbow on the table as she watched the girl. Not even a minute later, the front door swung open and Ukulele Pichu jumped into the front entrance, squeaking jovially, followed by a smiling Ben. "Hey, guys," he said softly.

"Oh!" Nema flung around. "Ben! Perfect timing! What do you like better, baby blue or cornflower blue?"

He gave her a confused look. "Cornflower blue, but why?"

"For our wedding, silly!" Nema hopped up from her chair and made her way to him, her duotang outstretched in her hands before her. Ben didn't even have to look into Summer's pleading eyes before catching on, deciding to play along with it.

"Ah, I see, dearest." He bent down on one knee so he was closer to her height. Nema's face flushed wildly at that, and as Summer look down at them, she felt a little twinge in her stomach. Next, Ben took both Nema's hands and spun her around, causing her to giggle and Ukulele Pichu to swirl around, too. "For the cake, do you want vanilla or chocolate?"

"Both!" Nema laughed, her face retaining its rosy blush.

As Summer watched them laughing away, she couldn't help but feel yet another petty, uncomfortable twinge of jealousy in her stomach. Jealousy. For what, an eleven year old? Summer knew that that was pathetic, but Ben hadn't treated her like the way he was with Nema right then for a long time, and she... _missed_ it.

"Summer even said that she isn't jealous of our love!" Nema said next, making Ben stop and stare at the aforementioned Ranger, a blush now appearing on his face. Summer's heart stopped right there and then and her cheeks went bright pink, as well. Did this kid know when to stop?

"Really now?" Ben smirked, causing Summer's blush to intensify about six shades of red.

"She'll even be my Maid of Hon-" Nema was interrupted by a highly embarrassed Summer, who marched up to her and began to push her out the door.

"Okay! We are done here!" She averted her eyes from that of Ben's prying ones.

"But I'm not done telling Ben about the details of our wedding yet," Nema complained.

"Yeah, well, we're going to see the Psyducks whether you like it or not," Summer tried to hide her blush from her best friend, who was trying to sneak a peek at her adorable expression. Ben always thought she looked cute when she got embarrassed. Not bothering to look back or give him the satisfaction of seeing her red face, she waved to him and mumbled out, "Bye, Ben! S-see you at dinner!" It was followed closely by a cheerful "See ya, Ben!".

Ben watched the pair of them walk away, Nema whining the entire time. He called a 'bye' to them before they were out of complete earshot. Sighing, he let a large smile cover his face, and his pink cheeks deepened in color the more he thought about it. _Dinner is going to be interesting tonight_, he thought as he shut the door to the house and walked off to continue patrolling again.

* * *

_End of Chapter 6~!_

* * *

**Author's Notes: **Originally, this chapter was meant to be chapter seven, and that's why in chapter five I was like "one moar chapter tah go before dis one, yayz". But I decided to change this chapter and the next one around because the story would flow better that way. But it doesn't really matter - it meant I got to type this chapter out even sooner! ^^

_'Til next time!_

_**Fooboo24**_


	7. Goodbye

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Pokemon.

**Author's Notes: **Sorry for the erratic-ness of my chapters. Just explaining it again for new readers, but this story is based on events from the game, not a straight continuity. Like, for example, the next chapter. It will take place a good amount of time after this one, and though there will be an explanation of what happened in between these two events, there won't be any in-between chapters. See? Just like I said, erratic!

* * *

**Chapter 7**_**-**__Goodbye_

* * *

"Can we take these blindfolds off now, please?" Summer complained to a giggling Nema, Leanne, and Rand, who were pushing both her and Ben along, respectively. Ukulele Pichu squeaked excitedly from her shoulder, a blindfold shielding his view, as well.

"Just a few more seconds," Leanne laughed, pushing a little harder on Summer's back, resulting in them walking a bit faster. Summer huffed and crossed her arms, but kept quiet for the rest of the short distance the five crossed. And, just like Leanne said, no more than thirty seconds passed before they all halted to a stop. Placing her fingers on the end of the knot of Summer's blindfold, her husband doing the same to Ben's, Leanne said brightly, "Now you can take them off!" She stepped back and pulled the knot, allowing the blindfold to fall to the ground.

Summer's eyes fluttered open at that, and she gasped slightly at the sight before her, her hands going straight to her mouth. Ukulele Pichu jumped up and down beside her, strumming his ukulele in happiness. Before both him, Summer, and Ben was Cocona Village, but it was decorated with colorful streamers every which way and tables of foods and drinks set up. Ben blinked in awe at it before flying around to stare at Rand and Leanne. "Surprise!" they cried.

"W-what is this?" he managed to say, blinking again.

Leanne opened her mouth to speak, but Nema answered for her. "It's the Rainbow Festival!" she hopped up and down at that.

"But not just that," Rand continued from his daughter. "It's also our little way of saying thank-you for how much you helped us. It's the least we could do for you."

Summer turned around now, beaming. "You guys are the best!" she ran to them, arms open wide to embrace them. She hugged each of them before returning to her spot next to Ben.

"Now let's get this party started!" Nema threw her hands into the air at that, and began running around, Ukulele Pichu following suit, all four of the others laughing at their sudden enthusiasm.

* * *

"Hey."

Summer turned from her perch on the Rainbow Dais beside Nema to see Ben standing beside her, holding two drinks in his each of his hands. "Want one?" It had been four hours since they had arrived at seven, meaning it was now eleven. The entire time they had partied, and as a result, were exhausted. Both were kind of just lingering around now trying to recollect what energy they had left.

Nodding, she reached over and took one. "Thanks." Beginning to walk away, he motioned for her to follow him. She did as she was directed, Ukulele Pichu tagging along obediently, and a few minutes later, they were sitting on the corner of Booker's deck.

"So, uh," Ben rubbed the back of his neck, looking out at the moonlit sea. He swallowed, not wanting to face the inevitable. He took a quick swig of his drink, trying to clear his throat for what he was about to say. "Um... we're going to have to leave soon."

"I guess so..." Summer trailed, checking her Styler for the time. "It's almost eleven. We should probably get to back to Rand's - we have an early patrol tomorrow." Ukulele Pichu yawned at that.

Ben sighed, setting his drink down beside him before turning to Summer. "No, Summer, I mean we're going to have to leave Oblivia soon. I... I don't know when, exactly, but soon. We're done here - we finished what we came here to do. We defeated the Pinchers already, and Hastings said for us to be back as soon as possible. I got the message last night, but didn't want to tell you because... well, we're both so happy here. I love Oblivia."

The realization of it all hit Summer just like *that*. It was true. They _were _going to have to go back to Almia and leave Oblivia behind. They _were_ going to have to leave Rand, Leanne, and Nema. Tears formed in Summer's eyes at that. Did they really have to leave? It seemed like it was just too soon! And she couldn't bear to leave behind Rand and his family! She just couldn't! "Ben... I... n-no... I don't want us to go back to Almia..." She, regretfully, let a tear fall.

Ben almost couldn't bring himself to utter the next bit of news to her. If leaving Oblivia was this hard for her, as it was for him, would the next thing he was about to say be as horrible for her as it had been for him? "Summer, I... I'm not going back to Almia," he admitted, looking away so he didn't have to see her reaction.

"W-what do you mean, 'not going back to Almia'? Where would you being going instead?" She blinked incredulously, and he looked back at her with sad eyes. Once again, realization it her, and she balled her fists and snapped her eyes shut to stop the newest flow of stinging tears. Her hands then flew to her face as they forced themselves out of her eyes. "No, Ben! No! You can't leave me! You can't go to Fiore! I won't let you!" Pichu's expression changed from confusion to immense worry for his Partner.

"Summer, please, don't do this," he placed a hand on her shoulder, rubbing it soothingly. "This is already hard enough - don't make it worse than it is." Ben was trying to stay the rational one in the situation, the strong one, but he, too, began to find his resolve slipping and himself beginning to tear up along with her.

"B-but, B-Ben..." she looked up at him, trailing, tears spilling from her big, brown eyes. She couldn't bring herself to say anymore, and simply leaned into arms, silently asking for a hug. He complied instantaneously, wrapping his arms around her.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Ben heard a familiar voice call. He looked up to see Rand and Leanne walking over to them, a worried look on both's faces. Upon hearing their footsteps crunching in the sand, Summer pulled away suddenly from Ben, sniffling and wiping her nose and eyes the best she could. When they arrived at the pair, though, it was still very evident that she had been crying.

"Oh, honey, what's wrong?" Leanne put her arm around Summer's shoulders, pulling her into a motherly embrace. This just restarted Summer's waterworks.

Rand looked over at his wife and the other Ranger, who were now sitting on Booker's deck trying to cease Summer's tears. The question and concern was evident in Rand's eyes, and Ben sighed before answering. "We've been told we have to leave soon." He glanced at Summer again, before continuing in a whisper, "And we're being split up. I... I'm going to Fiore, and Summer's going back to Almia."

At the mention of leaving, Leanne's hand snapped around and she gave an audible gasp. "What are you talking about?" she inquired sharply. "You two can't leave!" Her face reddened in the sudden flush of emotions - a motherly sadness and anger - that filled her. "You can't leave Oblivia!" Her voice quietened then, like Ben's. "You can't leave us..." Her eyes began to tear up, as well, which caused a chain reaction for all of them. Even Rand, big, tough Ranger that he was, shed a few.

"Is there anything we can do to convince you two not to leave?" he asked after a second, crossing his arms.

Ben shook his head sadly. "It's not our decision to make, or, trust me, we would stay in a heart beat." He flashed a look over at Summer and Leanne, before turning his attention back to Rand.

For what felt like hours, the scene remained quiet, the only noise coming from the partying villagers back in Cocona. The only thing that brought them back to reality was Leanne's watch beeping. She switched it off, before sighing heavily. "That's the alarm I set for Nema. I said she could be out until twelve, just for tonight. I better go get her." She turned to her husband. "I'll see you at home." She then stood up, pulling Summer with her. "Summer, do you want to come with me? You look exhausted." And the truth was, she was horribly so. But she couldn't go to bed yet - not quite.

She simply shook her head and murmured something akin to 'no' in response. Leanne stared at her before nodding and heading back to the village to find her daughter and leave. Ukulele Pichu followed. At that, Rand turned back to Ben, and saw him staring at Summer with wide eyes. Noticing that they needed a moment alone, he called after his wife. "Actually, dear, I'll come with you!" And with that, he left the two young Rangers alone with each other again.

Ben took a seat next to Summer, both having completely forgotten about their drinks. After a second of consideration, he placed his hand on top of hers, but was surprised when she pulled hers away and instead crossed her arms, staring intently out at the moonlit sea. Ben just barely contained a sigh, and the pair remained quiet for the rest of night until they went home.

* * *

_Next Morning_

* * *

When morning-time came around, everyone was too sad to speak, and so the kitchen was strung with tension while making breakfast. Nema was confused, but kept quiet, only thanking her mother for making her breakfast. When the time came that they all sat around the table, though, Nema could no longer take it. "Why isn't anyone talking?" she cried, Ukulele Pichu squeaking in surprise from beside her.

Summer glanced at Ben, and Rand and Leanne gave each other a look before Leanne nodded, giving her husband the go to explain. "Nema," he started, closing his eyes and taking in a breath to brace himself for what he was about to say. He knew his daughter had grown attached to Ben and Summer, so this would be just as traumatizing for her as it had been for them. "The thing is... Um, you see... B-Be-"

Rand was cut off by Summer. "Ben and I have to leave Oblivia now that the Pokemon Pinchers are out of the way here and everyone is safe again," she answered bluntly, glaring at the syrup-soaked pancakes on her plate. She hadn't touched them even once, just stared.

All eyes flew from Summer to Nema, whose own eyes were beginning to fill up with tears. Though, instead of turning to either of her parents, she directed her next question at Ben. "I-is that true?" she blinked. How could this be? How could BOTH of them be leaving her? It wasn't fair!

Ben simply nodded. Nema felt like screaming at the conformation, but contained herself. Leanne tried to comfort her daughter, "We didn't want you to find out like this, Nema. Really. It was so sudden for you."

Nema glared at her mother. "When were you expecting to tell me, then, hm? At all, even?" And at that, she hopped off her chair and stamped away to her room. "I'm working on my newest invention. Please leave me be," she informed them through clenched teeth. When she arrived at her door, she turned around, gave each of them a dirty look before the full force of it hit her and the tears began to spill from her eyes. She turned away from them hastily and removed her glasses before wiping them away with her lab coat sleeve. Finally, she entered her room, cast them all one more forlorn glance, and slammed her door, effectively cutting herself off from the situation - for now. She knew in a few hours that she would have to face the truth and talk to her parents about it.

Summer was the next. Her chair made a heinous noise as it she pushed it out rather violently. She left the room without a word. Ben sighed at her actions. He'd been through the silent treatment already! It's not like he could control it! But, deep down, Ben knew that Summer was not angry with him because she _did _know that it wasn't his fault that they had to leave and that he had to go to Fiore instead of staying with her. It just wasn't. This was just way of venting - acting all angry and concealing the sadness within. He knew Summer, and this was just her.

Rand, no longer wanting to deal with it all, also got up from the table, taking a piece of toast in his mouth while mumbling to his wife, "I'm going out to, uh, patrol." The only people left at said table were the troubled Leanne and Ben. Leanne now got up herself and began to collect the half-eaten food and dishes left behind. Ben, with another sigh, got up to help her. This was going to be a long day, he could tell, and it was only nine in the morning.

* * *

_End of Chapter 7~!_

* * *

**Author's Notes: **I thought y'all deserved just a slightly longer chapter.

_'Til next time!_

_**Fooboo24**_


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